In the absence of foreign tourists, HRAWI urges the state to promote and encourage domestic tourism.

The West Indies Hotel and Restaurant Association (HRAWI) urges the government to fully promote domestic tourism.

According to a recent report from Capa India, foreign tourist arrivals could not reach pre-COVID levels until 2023. With the recent surge in the number of COVID-19 positive cases, the industry hardest hit by the pandemic has come under renewed pressure. Discouraged by the surge in COVID cases in the state, customers are avoiding their favorite hotels and restaurants. Hospitality businesses continue to follow social distancing standards, planned disinfection and hygiene practices, but are seeing a gradual decline in visitor numbers.

“The hotel industry is at a crossroads today. Just as we were about to get out of the lockdown-induced slump, new cases surfaced and the numbers are increasing every day. There is only so much that the government can do to control the spread of the virus. On the other hand, the vaccination campaign is carried out extremely efficiently, which gives hope to the hotel industry. Significant numbers of people will be vaccinated and out of the red zone over the next few months. This way, they can travel and eat out without worry. To date, however, sales are below 50 percent of the pre-COVID times and visitor numbers are declining, ”he says Sherry Bhatia, President of HRAWI.

“The recovery curve for the hospitality industry will be long. The tourism and hospitality industry generated foreign exchange (FEE) income of Rs. 194,881 crores ($ 29.96 billion) in 2019. Even if the country’s population is liberated after vaccination, it will still not be this year Give free trade deals, and the FEE will be close to zero. This is a challenge that both industry and government must face. While this revenue gap will be difficult to fully fill, it may be possible to fill the gap. The way to do this would be to promote and promote domestic tourism, ”he said Pradeep Shetty, Senior Vice President of HRAWI.

“Since the closure was lifted, around 30 percent of the hotels and restaurants have not opened and 20 percent have closed permanently due to losses. Those who are open to business are under great stress. There is a sharp drop in hotel occupancy as work from home culture continues and there are no foreign tourists. Sales are less than 50 percent of the period before the COVID. Sector-specific relief has not yet been offered by the government. If we evaluate the situation, it doesn’t look good for the hotel industry, at least for the next 2 to 3 years. So we are again calling on the state government to look beyond today’s scenario and work out a plan to maintain tourism and hospitality for at least the next five years, ”Shetty concluded.

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